The invention concerns a baler with a baling chamber shaped for forming parallelepiped bales and a baling plunger that can move within it.
The prospectus xe2x80x9cGREENLAND Large Baler Vario Industryxe2x80x9d no publication date, discloses a large baler with a baling chamber that can be repositioned in 5 cm. steps between a height of 0.65 m. and 0.8 m. In this way bales of differing dimensions can be produced.
The problem underlying the invention is seen in the fact that a rebuilding to another chamber cross section requires approximately one working day. Furthermore, at the present, a greater range of chamber cross sections is being demanded.
According to the present invention, there is provided an improved baling chamber construction for forming parallelepiped bales which permits the cross sectional area of the chamber to be adjusted.
An object of the invention is to provide a baling chamber of the type described above wherein the cross section of the baling chamber can be changed as desired and made to conform to the size, particularly the height, of the transport vehicle available for the particular field, this change being accomplished without a time consuming rebuilding procedure.
A specific object of the invention is to provide an adjustable baling chamber wherein the needles together with the entire binding arrangement is located on the movable upper part of the housing such that the spacial relationship does not change during its repositioning, thereby assuring a safe entry of the points of the needles into the knot tying device.
Another object of the invention is to construct the drive for the plunger such that it may be repositioned in the direction of repositioning of the upper housing part of the baling chamber such that it makes it possible to apply the force at all times to the center of the baling plunger, so that in its end position this component occupies a safe end position without any tilting.
Another specific object of the invention is to provide a baling chamber having an upper housing part which may be repositioned by the use of spindles, spread linkages or the like, but more advantageously may be repositioned by the use of motors, particularly of remote controlled motors, since these can transmit great forces by simple means.
Yet another specific object of the invention is to provide an adjustable baling chamber wherein the side surfaces are covered across their entire height, then no part of the crop to be baled can escape and cause jams. This is accomplished by making the side surfaces of continuous, one-piece components extending from the top or from the bottom, the result being a smooth surface with low frictional resistance; and by making the side walls in upper and lower sections that overlap in the vertical direction, the entire side wall projects are neither at the top nor at the bottom. Depending on the dimensions selected, such a large vertical repositioning movement can be attained, that access to the baling chamber from the outside is possible.
Another object of the invention is to provide an adjustable baling chamber which is of a light-weight configuration achieved by having the large components, particularly the cover and the bottom as well as the side walls of the baling chamber in a light-weight configuration so that the forces are absorbed by a few massive components, particularly the repositioning arrangement, which surround, carry and reposition these.
The adjustment of the baling plunger to accommodate adjustments in the size of the baling chamber may be done by constructing the plunger for being constructed in a telescoping fashion so that it may be extended and retracted in the direction of its height, this being accomplished in a technically simple and robust solution by constructing the baling plunger such that it contains a lower part upon which one or more upper parts can be applied selectively. The upper part that was applied can be configured as a box or the like.
In order to avoid the upper part of the plunger from shifting relative to the lower part during the baling process, positive locking elements are provided, for example, grooves and ribs, shoulders, an enclosing rim, journals and recesses and the like, which lock the upper part to the lower part. Compared to a friction lock or an interference lock, this has the advantage of greater reliability or greater flexibility.
The upper part can be exchanged easily and nevertheless occupies a secure position, if securing devices are provided for these, that are configured in conventional manner, for example, as screws, pins, locks and the like.
The covering at the sides of the baling chamber has no effect upon the repositioning in height, if the side walls extend into slots in the movable or the fixed parts of the housing and can extend into these to a greater or lesser distance.
The ability of the needles to conform to the knot tying devices can be accomplished easily if openings are provided in the base body through which the journals can extend which carry the needle support arms and which are connected to the movable part of the repositioning arrangement.
If instead of a repositioning in the height of the bale, its width is to be changed, then not only the height of the platform of the transport vehicle, but alternatively its width and length can be taken into account and an optimum loading can be attained. In principle, the repositioning arrangement would only be rotated through 90xc2x0 and extended in the horizontal direction. The ribs would extend not in the height but in the width. If the supply channel is made to conform in its cross section or is provided with guide vanes, a uniform charge over the entire width is assured.